Intronaut - Habitual Levitations (Instilling Words With Tones)AOTY for me in the metal genre. Those poly rhythms from Danny walker! They've managed to chunk in so many layers of texture and rhythm. So with this record there are no shifts between progressive to post-metal passages, everything is going on at the same time. Pure eargasm for any prog fan.

2.

Gris - À L'Âme Enflammée, L'Äme Constellée...O' desolate ones. Heed yourselves to the call of Gris, the grim and mournful duo from Quebec, Canada. With 80+ minutes of material sprawling across 2 discs, an unbridled and wanton ultra bleak portrait of symphonic/atmospheric post-black painted on an epic canvas that ends up being clearly transcendant by all means.

3.

Shade Empire - Omega ArcaneTired of waiting for Septicflesh? All you prayers have been answered by the guys in Shade Empire. Who knows? You'll love this even more. Brilliant drumming on this one as well ;)

4.

Obliteration - Black Death HorizonMindnumbingly good death metal record. The third from these norwegian death metallers. Probably the best death metal record I've heard in the last 5 years. That bass is just frigging unbelievable. Transient Passage is one of the best dm tracks ever written.

5.

Dream Death - Somnium ExcessumStuff this good needs to be heard to be believed. A perfect example of a metal record that will get you engaged and make you like it instead of having to force or adapt yourself.

6.

Ataraxie - L'Être Et La NauséeYou don't want your funeral death doom record to end? Then surely this one is for you. Some excellent black metal passages here. A little more rougher production job would've made it perfect.

7.

Oblivion - Called To RiseThere are few instrumental tracks here namely tracks 6,13 and 14 that show the chops of this outstanding band. Dayum best techdeath of this year.

8.

Lingua Mortis Orchestra - LMOHighly Recommended! One of the gems of this year. Brilliant record from start to finish. Heavily Symphonic Power metal with a lot of synthesizer to just add in to that awesomeness. Some passages remind me of Helloween and Ayreon at their Prime! Now that's saying something right? Check this out NOW if you haven't already.

9.

Inquisition - Obscure Verses For The MultiverseSuper-awesome drool worthy artwork from the amazing new Italian master Paolo girardi. Perfecly descriptive of the music here as well. Inqy at its very best. Lord Kermit FTW!

10.

Njiqahdda - Serpents In The SkyMost unique and uncategorisable avant-black album of the whole year. Jazzy drumming that is both proggy and psychedelicy black. Free flowingly energeric and amazingly creative, has a loose execution style that doesn't take itself too seriously ergo very enjoyable.

11.

Cult Of Luna - VertikalOutstanding post-metal release, probably one of the best in the whole genre with great ambiance and impressive drumming. Very solid from start to end. Vicarious Redemption is just a masterpiece.

12.

Dormant Ordeal - It Rains, It PoursSlam death AOTY. Way too engaging and good for a death record, pretty unbelievable stuff.

Gorguts - Colored SandsA work of perfection. So reminiscent of their opus Obscura and unlike anything ever seen in Death metal since.

17.

Ulcerate - VermisGathers enough pace and momentum to tear down entire continents and cause all sorts of Tectonic shifts with devastating results, every time it is summoned.

18.

Feared - Furor IncarnatusGroovy, melodic brutal death that is enjoyable in every aspect. One of the best guitar tones I've ever heard in any metal genre/band/album.

19.

Bölzer - AuraSome of the best 23 minutes you'll ever have in 2013 if you are a death metal fan.

20.

Karnivool - AsymmetryAmazing exercise in prog metal with art rock like inclinations. The Tool worship is there but far from being a complete rip-off. Pretty dense and thick and happening, to draw a few variances from the aforementioned band.

21.

Deafheaven - SunbatherDon't let the cover art fool you for some mellow shoe-gaze album, this one is brilliant post-black metal album similar to those of Krallice though every bit more awesome.

22.

Protest The Hero - VolitionSubsequent listenings made me realize that this is just how good PTH are on a normal day. So a definitely a outstanding record for the amazing concoctions of the genres they play. Highly recommended for all fans of modern metal. And special mention and a bow to the ever amazing Chris Adler. ;)

23.

Deeds Of Flesh - Portals To CanaanHas classic reeking all over it. All you fucking pussies hungry for good latest metal releases, grab this for and give your balls some breathing time.

Altar Of Plagues - Teethed Glory & InjuryThis one features shorter songs than their previous releases with fair bit of electronic ambience thrown into the mix. Sad thing that the band will be disbanding this year as they were a stellar act in the post-black scene.

29.

Kalmah - Seventh SwamphonyMelodeath is a genre where the best bands seems to be the mostly overlooked ones. Just saying.

Tribulation - The Formulas Of DeathReminiscent of the sound of Sylosis, this one is a 75+ minutes long record of High octane Thrash Death with a surprising start and end featuring the sound of Indian instrument Veena!

34.

Oranssi Pazuzu - ValonieluExcellent album from these masters of weird psychedelic space black metal that is less avant and more "metal" than their last one.

Six Feet Under - UnbornKILLER STUFF! A MASSIVE TURNAROUND AND A BIG FUCK YOU TO ALL MOTHERFUCKERS WHO WROTE THIS BAND OFF! All too soon after the last album, you say? No, you dickhead listen to it and you'll get it that they are just continuing the strong run from the last album. Also the only 6FU album to feature Ola Englund and the inimitable Kevin Talley!. Woo-hoo, one more reason to go fuck yourself for not listening to this.

Botanist - IV: Mandragora"The Budding Dawn is war, And war requires soldiers, Soldiers to bring about, The apocalypse of man" cries the Botanist from his garden as he weaves the legions that will undertake the demise of man as he gives the earth back to the hands of Mother nature. Surprisingly heavy presence of bass and the buzzing hammered dulcimer here are mixed with vocals a little too low in the mix. Don't miss out the brilliant lyrics. Part four of the war of the botanist is yours to experience.

Abyssal - Novit Enim Dominus Qui Sunt EiusA monstrous slab of wall-of-sound riffs put an all-out assault on your ears from the very beginning to closure via some solid death metal songwriting. Definitely one of the most painful onslaught you will endure this whole year. Highly recommended for all fans of death metal.

Aborym - DirtyA hyperfast blast of industrial drums that is almost omnipresent throughout the record convey the riffs and vocals. Recommended for fans of Genghis tron or similar sounding Industrial metal.

49.

Aeon Zen - EnigmaAmazing top-notch modern prog that is fully engaging from start to end.

A.M.S.G. - Anti-Cosmic TyrannyOne-man black metal band featuring the roughest production job I've heard. And yes, there are short passages in few songs featuring the almighty Sax. Sounding weird? No it doesn't sound bad though, check them out.

53.

Abomnium - CoffinshipsReally good for a one man band from Marcel's country. Hyperflast black metal with some thrashy leanings.

Autopsy - The Headless RitualWorked up a bit more doomy and shorter than the last one makes this a more solid release. Autopsy is a old workhorse with a never say die spirit that just amazes us and reminds how death metal should be done.

Born Of Osiris - Tomorrow We Die ∆liveWhatever they were gonna do after a masterpiece like The Discovery was definitely gonna disappoint me without doubt and add to that the firing of Jason Richardson from the band and his words about the members made them look like a bunch of wasted emo whack jobs. They've tried to recreate the magic of The Discovery here and formula is applied fairly well. But this one lacks that brilliant mix of concoctions that made their last one such a delight.

Buckethead - Forgotten LibraryAmazing instrumental metal album from the guitar god Brian Patrick Carroll, eleventh in the pike series and the first of his mammoth output for 2013. Left me speechless after the first listen. Recommended!

111.

Buckethead - Pike 12The first track and the fifth track and brilliant masterpieces from the hands of this genius. Solid album once again.

Castevet - ObsianAmazing but too short and frankly could've been twice as longer.

120.

Cathedral - The Last SpireOne of the best doom albums of the year for sure. I can't give you a history lesson here on where this album stands on the rest of their discog or what kind of and how good a doom this is but this is surely some classic sounding doom that I very highly enjoy. And I am going to enjoy this even more in the subsequent listens I bet.

Clandestine Blaze - Harmony Of StruggleNo complaints or qualms for this one, I instantly liked all things about this release, it is really good if not excellent. Cultivated my affection for the project.

129.

Coat Of Arms (ARE) - Sun & SatellitesGeneric groove metal/metalcore.

130.

Code - Augur NoxNothing outstanding or highly unique here but some really good prog black. More leaning on the prog side than on black.

Corrections House - Last City ZeroFeaturing the members of Neurosis, Eyehategod, Minsk and Yakuza. Scott Kelly is in the line-up. Electronic drone/doom/post-metal. Good listen. Not much sludge though here.

138.

Cotard Syndrome - Suggestion Of The Last DaysDecent brutal death album.

Countess - Sermons Of The InfidelMediocre black with very bad programmed drums that ruin the total experience.

144.

Cult Of Luna - Vertikal IIThe vertikal brand getting stained here. Nothing of the quality of the full length release.

145.

Cult Of Occult - Hic Est Domus DiaboliOne of the my favourite doom albums of this year from the amazing french band CoO. This 70 minute monsterous monolith is a very heavy slow-moving evil work of art.

146.

Dagoba - Post Mortem Nihil EstReally heavy brand of Industrial metal, groovy and aggressive. Fans of FF and similar bands should have no problem with this one.

Dark Tranquillity - ConstructThat pathetic nu-metal cover and bland alt metal lacking in any degree of melodeath inclinations battle it out for which is the worst one. The loser is definitely the listener.

Defeated Sanity - Passages Into DeformityThis album falls halfway between mediocrity and excellence. Nothing too amazing or unique here, just average brutal/technical death where the drums feel weak and plastic.

161.

Dehumanizer - The Incomplete ManTDM that isn't overtly technical and filled with great songwriting and good solos. Good album.

Dreadnought - LifewovenBandcamp gem and some really outstanding work for a "pay what you want" album. Folky melodic prog that is highly recommended.

173.

Dream Theater - Dream TheaterThe band commented somewhere that Mangini did things in this album that were illegal and they thought that he shouldn't be able to do it. I'm sure those parts were edited out. I KNOW he is capable of those things musically, but i didn't find anything here that is worthy of someone of the caliber of Mangini. They are seriously under utilizing him imo. I wish he could bring some of his more extreme influences and skills to infuse into DT's sound. Portnoy was quite right in the fact that DT was progressing nowhere musically. This s/t record of theirs is just another fact that they are unable to recreate the magic of their early days. Tracks Enigma machine, The Enemy Inside and Illumination Theory are all decent though.

Endstille - Kapitulation 2013Not a furious onslaught from the get go to the end as I imagined it would be, too many mid-paced meanderings here and there. Songwriting doesn't help it either. Average record.

186.

Enshine - OriginGood album sounded like slightly gothic melodeath. Check it out its good.

Fleshgod Apocalypse - LabyrinthColossal and bestial, relentlessly drummed and heavily laced with symphonies. Yet another exercise in excess by the Italian gods of speed. Like a supercharged septicflesh on drugs, these guys have mastered every instrument of theirs 10x the normal tempo of every other techdeath band out there. If you didn't like the songwriting or the production on the last one, no doubt you will feel the same about this as well. FA didn't take the evolutionary path (from Oracles) everyone wished they would or the one(from Mafia) I loved. They have a vision of their own and their very well on their course to close in on it.

221.

Forlorn Path - Man's Last Portrait

222.

Four Giants - Blue HarvestOne very good prog metal album like that amazing Pomegranate Tiger debut.

Ghost B.C. - InfestissumamGhost B.C's sound, I found it neither evil nor doomy nor psychedelic. Classic heavy metal, this one is. Don't try this out if you're only sticking to extreme metal and have no time or patience for traditional heavy metal albums.

GloryHammer - Tales From The Kingdom Of FifeViking tinged prog. Somewhat reminiscent of wintersun but not that bleak and melodic but definitely good power record. Better than those of the big names this year.

Guttural Slug - MegalodonSomewhat interesting as the riffs sound somewhat groovy but the vocals are a big time turn off. Cunnilingus may not be the vocalist's strong point I guess or maybe he literally may not have teeth and tongue attached to his mouth as his work here suggests.

243.

Hacride - Back To Where You've Never BeenTechnical metal that isn't djenty or filled to the brim with terrible screamy vocals. Great album with a Textures and early meshuggah like raw sound.

Hate Meditation - ScarsBlake judd is a genius and his work here is nothing similar to the one in Nachtmystium, but still good. The MVP about this record should be the really heavy bass work courtesy of Wrest of Leviathan, that is very prevalent in the mix. The rough production here does wonders to the album.

Helloween - Straight Out Of HellLacks the fire and magick of their last outing. Everything from the ballads to the fast songs are very plain. If this was intentional and what they mean by " less doom-bound and noticeably more positive", then the end result is a record that is passable and devoid of even a single memorable riff/song except the track 'Wanna Be God' which again isn't a real song :(

255.

Hemotoxin - Between Forever...And The EndGood riffs here and songwriting here make this a worthwhile prog death release.

I Klatus - KetherOutstanding progressive psychedelic sludge album. On par with or even more amazing than the Kylesa record this year.

263.

Ice Field Kingdom - Civilization Of Decline

264.

Icons Of Brutality - Between Glory And DespairGood DM.

265.

Ihsahn - Das SeelenbrechenGenius decision from Ihsahn to take a direction like this. Very niche and full of rich textures and sublte electronic and melodic touches. Leprous as the backing band does magic especially the drummer. Not a lot of metal songs and riffs here but surely one of the best Avant-garde albums of the year. Imagine Njiqahdda without the metal parts.

266.

Immolation - Kingdom Of ConspiracyNot a crazy spiralling vortex death metal like their last record, but still a solid album much in the vein of their last EP which i found underwhelming tbh.

267.

Impious Baptism - Wrath Of The Apex PredatorPassable lo-fi black metal record that stoops lower and lower with a crappy finale featuring completely out-of-place moaning and orgasmic screams that is totally wtf-ish.

Lascaille's Shroud - Interval 01: Parallel Infinities - The Inner UniverseAnother great discovery for me, this year. This new and budding project is a mastermind of Brett Windnagle. Kudos man! Tipsy artwork, good production values, amazing song writing and interesting themes. It is a ecstatic feeling to see metal projects like this. And yes, it is available at a "Name your price" option from bandcamp. So what this needs is more audiences. Now go! ;)

Moon - The Nine GatesPossibly recorded inside a mausoleum with instruments stuck in cobwebs and vocals by cadavers. This totally soulless sepulchral doomy black beast has arrived just to remind you to secure your tomb.

Necrotroopers - The Cult Of The DarnedFuneral Doom/Death from Kazhakstan. Clocking in at merely 3 Hours 32 minutes 7 Seconds. An experience of a lifetime. Definitely a overwhelming feeling to get this album through in a single sitting eventhough most of the material here are below par doom. The opener, title track and the closer are the stand out ones though with lot of furious death parts in them as well, special mention to the closer here for being one monolith of a track.

Oceans Of Slumber - AetherialAwe-inspiring prog death album. Thanx to Psyko for putting some light on this. Everything is so good about this release, it's hard to pin point any flaws here. I still prefer the Lascaille's Shroud album to this though.

Omnium Gatherum - BeyondExpected this is to really blow, but was pretty impressed with the overall songwriting, better than NWS as far as I remember. Definitely solid to my ears despite melo-death being my most loathed sub-genre.

Pelican - Forever BecomingHealthy post metal though not as heavy or utterly brilliant as some of the other top-notch releases in the sub-genre this year.

379.

Pensées Nocturnes - Nom D'une Pipe!Real crazy avant-garde shit this one with a lot of classical parts. Quality is debatable since the black metal parts are so meagre but a worthy listen though.

380.

Persefone - Spiritual MigrationTons of chops on display here. Excellent bunch of songs with a high replay value. Extremely good record and one of the best Tech death records this year.

381.

Pessimist - Death from AboveOne of the better thrash albums this year. These german play really good songs with good songwriting and riffs that aren't too simplistic and generic. Fun album. Goes well with the Havok, Evile,gama Bomb and Annihilation albums this year.

382.

Peste Noire - Peste NoireAvant-garde, Symphonic, folk-ish and a lot more french street music weirdness in it and the simple bm tag given to this album doesn't do any just to this record.

Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals - Walk Through Exits OnlyNot bad as I thought it would be. This album tries to sound very aggressive and it succeeds at that level. From a songwriting level, not much depth here. Still better than those incredibly disjoined Superjoint Ritual records.

Pyres - Year Of SleepAin't much prog in this. Pedestrian sludge to my ears.

399.

Queens Of The Stone Age - ...Like ClockworkNot as good as or on par with SFTD but definitely one of best alternative/hard rock records this year, not something to be missed. Probably the third best in their career after Songs for the Deaf and Rated R.

Reptilian Death - The Dawn Of Consummation And EmergenceJust to give you a hint of how much I hate Indian metal: This is not only the first DM album from my country that I have heard in full, this is THE first metal album as well for me that my own nation has churned out. The Verdict? I do have heard worse DM albums. So, there you go.

Revocation - RevocationOne of the most important thrashers of the current era have unleashed their self-titled beast this year. The verdict? Pretty consistent record overall with a furious cover of Dyer's Eve as the closer. Downsides? Not very memorable as their last EP or their second LP.

Riverside - Shrine Of New Generation SlavesGreat backronym for the word SONGS. Amazing production values and near perfect instrumentation. Sadly the songwriting isn't hooky, catchy or memorable with the first few spins. A grower, this record might be for some as it was for me.

Rosetta - The AnaestheteGreat post/prog record that stands up to if doesn't overthrow COL's masterwork this year.

414.

Rotting Christ - Kata Ton Daimona EaytoyGreat sounding black metal with a very clean modern production job tinged with a medieval flavour that works wonders to making this record a great worthwhile listen.

Satyricon - SatyriconSeriously so whatthefuckish than any black metal record I've heard whole year. This has to be the most pathetic attempt at creating a mainstream black album like evah. And the almost rubber-like-sounding drums makes this record shoot itself.

421.

Scale The Summit - The MigrationPretty smart guys at STS always keep their record short and awesome to never bore listeners as there are not a lot of takers for Instrumental prog these days. Seriously, these guys could make records twice as long as their current ones and it still would be cool. Such a massive talent this band is. Satisfying to see that the Instrumental metal genre still kept alive.

Shining (NOR) - One One OneDevoid of the two most important aspects that made their last outing such a massive beast - The electronics and the jazzy parts. A plain Industrial record where even their trademark, the almighty Sax is very scarcely used.

The Black Dahlia Murder - EverblackThey have tried so hard on this release to a make it a good and interesting one and works out in some tracks as the record pummels across in frenetic pace to keep itself falling into monotonous territory. Decent release.

The Monolith Deathcult - TetragrammatonThese masters of cyber-death have crafted latest soundtrack for Armageddon. Perfect album for misanthropes and agents of apocalypse who can't wait to sing the celebration of Man's demise and the coming of the robotic age.

473.

The Phantom Carriage - FallsThey call their sound a mixture of Black metal, Crust, hardcore and Screamo. Good album this one. Sounds sludgy as well to me.

474.

The Prophecy (UK) - SalvationVery very very weak, light sounding and transparent production and spoils the whole listening experience of this doom record.

Ulver - Messe I.X-VI.XMetal gods in a league of their own. Fearless and unperturbed, their latest avatar is out there for all to behold. Serene music to soothe agitated minds à la albums like Ghosts I-IV

496.

Unbirth - Deracinated Celestial Oligarchy

497.

Unhuman - UnhumanDebut record of this Techdeath quartet from Canada. You've heard enough. Mindbogglingly good one this.

Wolfheart - WinterbornWasn't looking forward to much being fooled by the bland and awful album cover but some fucking amazing melodeath here. Good record and one of the most unique and outstanding melodeath records this year. Recommended.

Characters - Once They BleedThe pussiest clean vocals I've ever heard in my life. Total crap power metal listen.

529.

Watain - The Wild HuntWill bore you to the core in the first few opening minutes. Then will bore you for 40 more. Worthless, shitty, pointless riffs that have no idea or purpose or destination. Song pacing and structures are to be pissed at. Pathetic, lame record with a lamer artwork.

530.

Palms - PalmsUn-fucking-bearable. >:{ Fucking twats. This is one nitwit meandering of post-whatever sounds with practically non-existent riffs. Probably the worst super group in recent memory. No metal here, no rock either, not anything good here.

Ok, you've caught me there. I was assuming it just on the strength of their debut record and Perdition City. Not very aware of the other records. Will give a spin and come back on this. Maybe "Avant-garde Black Gods" would do. :p

Ok, you've caught me there. I was assuming it just on the strength of their debut record and Perdition City. Not very aware of the other records. Will give a spin and come back on this. Maybe "Avant-garde Black Gods" would do. :p

Well, beyond Bergtatt, Ulver haven't touched metal, so that's 3 metal albums (though I actually have never heard 'Kveldssanger' = apparently the highest rated of their albums on Metal Archices which is weird because I've literally never seen anyone mention it). They have 9 albums and various EPs and stuff that are purely electronic-ish and so forth.

Oh man, your top 10 looks delicious. I have some albums to check out :O

To me it was immediately clear that this list is in alphabetical order.

HAHHAHA I would...

This is awkward.

Anyway, that does remind me of one thing I really hate in lists: alphabetical ordering. To me, it's far more meaningful to put your favourite albums in order so that a listener can immediately discern whether their taste aligns with the taste of the list-maker. If I find my taste even remotely aligns with someone else's list, then it is very easy for me to choose the next albums to listen to; they are simply the albums at the beginning of the list that I haven't heard before. For example, R'Vannith's list is one that has greatly resonated with me and has often informed me of things I have missed out on. You have some awesome albums on here, but it sure makes it difficult for me to find new ones that might jive with me, since I don't get a very good immediate sense of what your taste in music is. But that's just a personal thing-- let me just reaffirm that this is a nice, thorough list filled with albums that I have missed out on. Thanks!

Anyway, that does remind me of one thing I really hate in lists: alphabetical ordering.

Weird, or not, but I am cmplete opposite of you on this one, beacuse I hate lists that are non-alphabetized. Oh wait, not entirely true, I also like chronological, by year, lists.

I really like some of the older year lists I've seen floating around (ie. 1983, 1982). I've generally missed a lot of the old classics and they are a good way of filling in the gaps of my metal understanding. I know some people don't really value listening to the old classics and generally don't think they influence a lot of the trends going on currently in metal, but I think it's vital to listen to these records. But even then, they are mostly ranked from preference. I still like those lists if they are alphabetized, though.

I don't really think it's weird at all to like alphabetical ordering. I feel like people who listen to a lot more music than I do like the alphabetized lists because they are ordered and very nicely laid out. If you see a couple of albums that are average for each letter, you can generally disregard the list or engage in conversation immediately. Alphabetization doesn't work for me since I'm still a novice/intermediate metalhead that listens to music at a pretty slow rate; I'm still fixated on discovering and I'm starting to develop my own personal taste and an idea of what I'm looking for in music. Alphabetical lists impede this goal by putting a lot of (what I deem as superfluous) albums before the ones I mostly care about.

I really like some of the older year lists I've seen floating around (ie. 1983, 1982). I've generally missed a lot of the old classics and they are a good way of filling in the gaps of my metal understanding. I know some people don't really value listening to the old classics and generally don't think they influence a lot of the trends going on currently in metal, but I think it's vital to listen to these records. But even then, they are mostly ranked from preference. I still like those lists if they are alphabetized, though.

I don't really think it's weird at all to like alphabetical ordering. I feel like people who listen to a lot more music than I do like the alphabetized lists because they are ordered and very nicely laid out. If you see a couple of albums that are average for each letter, you can generally disregard the list or engage in conversation immediately. Alphabetization doesn't work for me since I'm still a novice/intermediate metalhead that listens to music at a pretty slow rate; I'm still fixated on discovering and I'm starting to develop my own personal taste and an idea of what I'm looking for in music. Alphabetical lists impede this goal by putting a lot of (what I deem as superfluous) albums before the ones I mostly care about.

I can totally see where you're coming from. And, indeed, I listen to a shitload of albums each and every year. I think on average at least 500 new releases and loads of older releases as well.

----Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal

Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight
Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.)
05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996

Weird, or not, but I am cmplete opposite of you on this one, beacuse I hate lists that are non-alphabetized. Oh wait, not entirely true, I also like chronological, by year, lists.

Yet your own list isn't any of those things. Or are you only talking about year-lists?

Anyway, I think it depends on what kind of list it is. My own top 75 is alphabetical because I can't really choose some favourites of mine over others. To give people who look at the list an idea of my true favourites (as in 10/10 albums) I recently added stars. Of course "best to worst" lists are ordened by preference, as are my gothic and death doom lists (having those alphabetically would be less helpful I think... and adding scores (which I initially did) is too subjective). My debut albums list and one-man band lists are both alphabetically ordened because I've only listened once to most of the albums on it so it's simply impossible to rank them (and those are general lists anyway, so alphabetical is the best way for those).

Anyway, I think it depends on what kind of list it is. My own top 75 is alphabetical because I can't really choose some favourites of mine over others. To give people who look at the list an idea of my true favourites (as in 10/10 albums) I recently added stars. Of course "best to worst" lists are ordened by preference, as are my gothic and death doom lists (having those alphabetically would be less helpful I think... and adding scores (which I initially did) is too subjective). My debut albums list and one-man band lists are both alphabetically ordened because I've only listened once to most of the albums on it so it's simply impossible to rank them (and those are general lists anyway, so alphabetical is the best way for those).

I think your explanation is somewhat accurate. Thank you for that.

You know what ordering albums in year-end lists is like? Its a pain the arse.

You know what ordering albums in year-end lists is like? Its a pain the arse.

Haha, yeah I can understand that by simply seeing how long this list is. I hate to say this, but while I like lists (not a surprise of course ), year-lists are not very interesting to me. I think I only thumbed up 4 year-lists in total on the whole of MS, one of those being MechanisT's 2011 list, the others being of The Melting Snow (simply because his year-lists are not long and really suit my taste) and InnerSelf (for the same reasons). Although you definitely did a good job with this list I must say, with the desciptions and all.

I don't hear any death in Inquisition. I'd rather call it black or melodic black. Also, there's black in Shade Empire... and death in Ataraxie (at least in their debut, although Marcel disagrees with me ). Just felt like sharing this... do with it what you will.

Dude, this list is getting huge. At the end of this year your list will be longer than my longest list (you know which one ).

The numbers game aside I try to give descriptions to all so as to make it seem less generic. But some albums are frankly so bad and so forgettable that I don't even remember how it was by the time I come to update this list.

Btw I know you regularly update that list so I might as well keep this updating as long as find albums this year worth putting in a word or two about.

The numbers game aside I try to give descriptions to all so as to make it seem less generic. But some albums are frankly so bad and so forgettable that I don't even remember how it was by the time I come to update this list.

Btw I know you regularly update that list so I might as well keep this updating as long as find albums this year worth putting in a word or two about.

Wtf, you're crazy man. You already have more albums on here than I have on my longest list. Surely descriptions will improve the list though and indeed make it less generic.

And you might just listen to too much new stuff man, if you can't even remember some albums, hahaha. Maybe it's best to immediately add an album after you listened to it, or do you listen to it more than once? But yeah, I don't see why you wouldn't add albums if you listen to them anyway. But you've listened to about 10 times as many 2013 albums (yes, I've checked out 30-40 albums this year and that's a lot by my standards) so forgive me if the list is too long for me.

It might just well be but how I put it was I just heard all the furious parts and they sounded pretty black to me. Death or black, I wasn't sure.

Anyway, thanx.

I listened to it twice so far and can't remember hearing any black in it, but for all I know you're right. When I check it out again I'll listen closely. Funnily some bands that aren't considered BM at all sometimes have black in them. For example, I was listening to Orchid a few weeks ago and couldn't help but think that some parts sounded pretty damn BM to me. I'll let you know which parts I'm referring to if you're interesting.